Most people who have sinus headaches may actually have migraines instead. Four out of five people who experience something like pain in the head, stuffy nose, and watery eyes actually have migraine headaches. Now you might think “big deal!” but really, it is because treating a migraine headache like a sinus headache will not work.
DIFFERENCES IN SYMPTOMS AND CAUSES
If you have a sinus headache, you don’t usually tell your doctor about the headache first. Usually a patient will say they are sick and have a headache. Sinus headaches are usually caused by an infection and inflammation of the nasal passages. That leads to congestion which causes pain and pressure in the forehead and behind the cheekbones.
While some of the symptoms of sinus headache and migraine are similar like the headache itself, itchy or watery eyes, and pain associated with movement, migraine headaches also have these added symptoms: nausea or vomiting, sensitivity to sound or light, and severe throbbing pain on one side of the head. If a patient walks into the doctor’s office with a disabling headache pain that comes and goes, 95 percent of the time it’s a migraine headache.
DIFFERENCES IN TREATMENTS
If you have a sinus headache, treatment starts with decongestants, pain relievers, and nasal irrigation to ease sinus pressure, congestion, and help drainage. Antibiotics or nasal steroids are used as a second line of defense to treat the underlying infection or chronic disease. A sinus headache caused by an infection should go away soon after starting treatment.
In contrast, migraine headache treatments are not only to help get rid of the existing migraine, but they are intended to help reduce the frequency, severity, and duration of these debilitating headaches.
Medications called triptans are used during a migraine attack to reduce pain and restore function. Other drugs, called antiepileptics can be used to prevent migraine attacks. Botox injections are also beneficial to help prevent chronic migraines. Hormone therapy is used for women who have migraines linked to their menstrual cycle.
Lifestyle is also important to prevent migraines. Stress-reducing therapies — such as exercise, relaxation, and biofeedback may also help prevent the recurrence and severity of migraines.
Learning your migraine triggers and avoiding them also matters. If there are certain foods or environmental situations that trigger your migraines, you should avoid them as much as possible.
Now that we have discusses some of the treatment differences, let’s compare the two headaches. If you treat your migraine like a sinus headache, with pain relievers, you may get some temporary relief but you may also get a rebound headache. Overuse of analgesics can cause rebound headaches.
If your headache doesn’t get better with over-the-counter medications and it interferes with your daily life, it is time to see a doctor. Also, if you have a headache but don’t know which type you have, see a doctor. Additionally, if your headache gets progressively worse, is associated with neurological symptoms such as loss of vision or muscle weakness, and is accompanied by a fever or stiff neck, you need to see a doctor immediately.
Bottom line, if you have a headache that comes and goes, it should be considered a migraine until proven otherwise.
Tags: aura, cause of migraines, enlarged blood vessels, genetics, Hormonal, menstration, migraine, migraine triggers, stress, Weather
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